5.22.2015

Giro 13: dreadful

Break: Marco Frapporti (Androni Giocattoli). Rick Zabel (BMC Racing Team), Jérôme Pineau (IAM Cycling). In this order at the first intermediate sprint while Giacomo Nizzolo (TFR) wins for the peloton. 78 kms to go gap is only 1'13".

At the second intermediate sprint Zabel is 1st, Boem - in Red - wins for the peloton.

60 km to go Frapporti, Zabel and Pineau have only 55"

All together 17 km to go. Team Tinkoff takes the front.

4 km to go sprinters team time and TFR leads.

3.30 HUGE CRASH! Alafaci crashed hard and is still down, Richie Porte, Fabio Aru and Alberto Contador got involved and have to chase. Bravo Tosatto who runs and gives Contador his bike. Porte eventually gets on Kiryenka's bike but it's late (and the frame too big!)

At the sprint Sacha Modolo put his bike slightly in front of Giacomo Nizzolo.

Aru is the new Pink Jersey. Viviani is back in Red.UPDATE about Manuel Belletti: it's a fracture of the patella with bursitis and inflammatio. Bad news really!UPDATE about Eugenio Alafaci : according to his team "he's being shuttled off to hospital for further analysis but possible fractured elbow."

Richie Porte:"That's bike racing I suppose. Sometimes you're the hammer, sometimes you're the nail #nail""I was down in amongst it. There's not much you can do, is there, when everyone in front of you goes down. What's happened? There was a crash. It's just how it is today. It's wet and nervous. It wasn't really a big surprise there was a crash to be honest."We'll see what happens. We saw the jury the other day, they don't like changing the rules, do they?. It happened in Paris-Nice too, and they changed it, so we'll just see."Alberto Contador:"I remain motivated and will try to recover as quickly as possible"

“We were well positioned in the stage and we could see the crash coming. We were waiting for the 3km mark but, unfortunately, the crash took place 3,200 meters from the finish and as a result there was no neutralization. My first reaction, before checking if I was ok, was to try to get a bike as soon as I could in order to make it to the finish line.The time I lost wasn't extraordinary, about 36 seconds, but it will be quite difficult to recover. However, what worries me more is the blow I received on my left leg because it seems I got hit by the chainring of another bike. This is what could potentially harm me the most. Hopefully, it's nothing more than superficial wounds.Nevertheless, I won't lose my fighting spirit and I will keep a positive attitude. I will try to recover as soon as I can, put ice on my leg in order to limit the inflammation and then see what happens tomorrow”. Elia Viviani:“The red jersey is the big focus after my stage win. Richie lost more time today after the crash and it’s certainly not a lucky Giro d’Italia for him. Tomorrow we have a big time trial and then after the Madonna di Campiglio stage he can decide what he wants to do for the rest of the race.We knew it was dangerous today with the rain and we had a lot of guys to support Richie. But there was another crash and it’s just not a lucky race for us.”Rigoberto Uran:"Today was a short, but nervous stage with a lot of rain, so I had big help from my teammates to always stage in good position. Boonen and the others knew how I had to stay in a flat and chaotic stage like this. The finale was slippery and therefore a bit dangerous, especially with a few roundabouts. So I followed the wheels of my teammates and avoided bad luck, crossing the line in good position. As for tomorrow there is a time trial which is a crucial stage for me, but also the other riders. We will do our best to try to get a good result.They also predicted rain tomorrow, so it will be even harder. It's a huge effort and of course it is an important stage for me, as well as the other GC contenders. I want to honor my Colombian Champion jersey.My neck and shoulder still hurt, but fortunately I have our physios who will help me a lot, and will work on the muscles tonight. They have been doing a great job for me. I will be at the start tomorrow in the best condition possible."Fabio Aru:"Now I'm just thinking of tomorrow. I'll give it everything. But the Giro ends in Milan" Giacomo Nizzolo:“I knew the ending was tricky so I preferred to use the team early. In the last 10kms there were a lot of turns so I wanted to be safe in the front, but of course in the real finale I missed some guys and I was isolated. Anyway, I took the wheel of Modolo who had a super leadout from his team; they left him at 180 meters to go, so for him it was perfect.I saw the door open on the right and I went full on this side, but of course Modolo tried to close me on the barriers… and it was not possible to take the victory. Modolo changed his trajectory a little for sure, but he did not close the door. Anyone in his position would do the same. Good for him to win at home. I am really sorry because as everyone knows I have done enough second places.”Eugenio Alafaci:"A guy crashed just in front of me and I couldn't do anything to avoid it. I crashed on my left side, and the biggest pain I have is in my elbow. I wanted to finish, and after we did the X-ray which said it might be broken, but after a second one I am lucky because it's actually not broken. Tomorrow I think I can take the start."Team Sky DS Dario Cioni: "The guys were well-positioned in the peloton when the crash happened. There wasn’t much that we could do. Let’s see how it goes tomorrow with the time trial. It’s a huge test and after the outcome of that we’ll see where we are and make a plan."
"I don't know about Porte's reaction. Everybody responds in his own way. The gap was already pretty big yesterday, now it's like this. With the penalty and now another two minutes of bad luck, the gap is big."